Stocks surged yesterday, with the technology sector in the lead, as investors snapped up beaten down shares amid growing expectations the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates to boost the sagging US economy. Bargain-hunters helped spur the rally after four straight sessions of decline that drove the tech-packed Nasdaq Composite Index to its lowest close since April 1997 on Monday.
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 8,274.09 (+230.46)
The technology-packed Nasdaq Composite climbed 53.44 points, or 4.43 per cent, to end at 1,259.45, according to the latest available figures. It rallied more than 6 per cent during the session. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 230.46 points, or 2.87 per cent, to 8,274.09, while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 25 points, or 3 per cent, to 859.60. Both market gauges snapped a three-session streak of declines.
Technology heavyweights like computer chip maker Intel, web gear giant Cisco Systems and software maker Sun Microsystems took centre stage. Cisco climbed 69 cents, or 6 per cent, to $12.05. Intel rose $1.25, or 8 per cent, to $17.13, while Sun Microsystems jumped 25 cents, or 7 per cent, to $3.78. - (Reuters)
